Dr John Bodkin Adams

The gossip in the town finally led the police to investigate and they arrested Adams on suspicion of murder. The general rumours that swept the genteel seaside resort were that Adams’ bedside manner was to persuade a wealthy widow to write a will which left him money before administering a lethal concoction of drugs.
Accusations and hearsay had reached such a peak that the local police had little choice but to undertake enquiries. At the same time the press got hold of the story and almost in a ‘trial by media’ manner helped reinforce the view that Adams was a GP with a sinister agenda. One headline ‘Inquiry into 400 wills’ no doubt helped fuel the view that Adams was a potential killer.
The police investigated for several months during 1956. Then on 1 October of that year they confronted Dr Adams with their suspicions concerning the death of Mrs Morrell. In his defence Adams argued that his ill patient, suffering terribly from pain, wanted to die. He argued that it wasn’t a crime to ease the suffering of the terminally ill. But it was the legacies left in the patients wills that caused the police to remain suspicious over Adams' motivations.